Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas Shine In First Premier League Game For Chelsea

By Lou Flavius

Getty Images.

Chelsea‘s new signings got off to a flying start against Burnley. Jose Mourinho couldn’t have asked for a better opening to the season, and his shrewd business has already begun paying off.

Striker Diego Costa looks like he has been playing for the Blues all of his life. He slotted perfectly into the team and combined neatly with his teammates throughout the game. It only took the Brazilian hitman 17 minutes to register his first Premier League goal, and Chelsea’s first goal of the season. He picked up a loose ball in the box and smashed it past the keeper to level the scores after the Blues had gone a goal down three minutes earlier.

Costa could have doubled his tally a few minutes later. The forward showed his pace to catch a careless defensive back pass and bore down on goal; he was brought down in the box by the Burnley keeper after a neat fake. The contact warranted a penalty, but the striker was instead shown a yellow card — an unfair and ludicrous decision from the referee.

Cesc Fabregas also made his mark on the game; the Spaniard was the main man in the Chelsea midfield. He rarely lost the ball and his passing was nothing short of extraordinary; he played a part in the first goal with a cheeky back heeled pass out wide. He later went on to set Andre Schurrle up with a stunning, inch-perfect pass to score and give Chelsea the lead. I will go out on a limb here and state that viewers won’t see a better assist this season.

Fabregas did not stop there, he also found Branislav Ivanovic in the box with an incisive corner kick. The big Serbian couldn’t have missed even if he tried; he struck home and put Chelsea ahead 3-1.

Fabregas played superbly throughout the game — he showed the control and composure that has set him apart from other midfielders. He is pure class and will unquestionably make a difference for Chelsea this season.

Chelsea now look an extremely formidable opponent. For long periods of the game, they uncharacteristically played “beautiful football.” The team has now gathered all the missing pieces. A prolific striker, a quality midfield and a stubborn defense. The addition of Didier Drogba doesn’t hurt them either, as the Ivorian will certainly play his part.

The Blues will have a major shout in the title race; they have the magic of Fabregas and the explosiveness of Costa to spur them on. It would be hard to imagine them coming up short this time around.

Lou Flavius is a soccer writer for RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @LouFlavius , “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.